


Flight of Icarus

by Missy_dee811



Category: Marvel's Avengers (2020), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Artist Steve Rogers, Fix-It of Sorts, Flashbacks, Getting Back Together, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Road Trips, Space Battles, Space Flight, Space Stations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-10
Updated: 2020-09-10
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:27:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26385637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Missy_dee811/pseuds/Missy_dee811
Summary: “Tony,” said Kamala, hurried.“I loaded up some music to give you a little boost,” she said.“Oh no,” he said, shaking his head.“Don’t worry,” she added. “It’s not mine.”He smiled.I knew I liked you.She wished him luck. He thanked her, though he didn’t believe in luck. He had one try, one try to get it right. She was counting on him, they all were. It felt good to be needed. It felt good to be useful. All these years, he had wanted nothing more. He couldn’t fail now. Not again.[Written for Lights On Park Ave - Round 13.]
Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark
Comments: 14
Kudos: 76
Collections: Lights on Park Ave





	Flight of Icarus

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kiyaar](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiyaar/gifts).



> _"Memory is a strange thing. It doesn’t work like I thought it did. We are so bound by time, by its order… But now I’m not so sure I believe in beginnings and endings." Arrival (2016)_

**All systems are in the green, sir.**

Tony waited with bated breath. _This was real_.

He was ready.

He had to be.

It had all felt surreal. From the moment he laid eyes on Kamala, when she and Bruce had found him, back in the desert. He had been sequestered in Golden Acres for years. After… After what had happened in the Bay, Bruce had been called before Congress. His testimony had been the last nail on the coffin. They had seized all his assets. The Tower was sold, the company liquidated, and the Avengers… Disassembled.

He made his way out west. At first, he wasn’t sure why. Soon it dawned on him.

Steve had loved the desert. Growing up in New York and fighting fascists in Europe had left him with little chance to see the desert with his own eyes. He had never been that far west.

_“Western Europe?”_

_Tony laughed, softly._ _“No, I meant the plains, the mountains, the desert… Have you been?”_

_He shook his head._

_“Perfect, I know where we can go. Whenever you want.”_

Gratefully, Steve took him up on the offer. They were sitting across from each other, enjoying each other’s company and the pad Thai before them, when Steve brought up the topic. The next day, Tony had Pepper reschedule all his meetings. He spent the rest of the day deliberately avoiding her and her questions.

She caught him off guard just before leaving the office. “If it’s serious, will you tell me?”

He nodded. He couldn’t say much more. Though he didn’t believe in fate, he didn’t want to jinx it.

They took one of Tony’s nondescript cars. It was an older black Audi. They stuffed their bags in the trunk, and kept Steve’s shield under wraps, nestled under their pillows and blankets. And then, they drove across the southwest.

Every time they stopped, Steve pulled out a sketchpad and drew the sky. Every sky, every night. And when, at last, they had made it to the Grand Canyon, Tony had asked about the sketchpad when he saw Steve pull up without it in hand.

_“It’s full.”_

_“You didn’t bring another?”_

_“Didn’t think I’d need it,” he said, nonchalantly._

_Tony knew better. He gave Steve a pointed look._

_He stuck his hands in his pockets._ _“I couldn’t do her justice,” said Steve, humbly._

_He had turned to face him, the starlight twinkling in his eyes._

_“Yeah, I know the feeling,” he said._

He missed… He missed being needed. He missed being useful. He missed being on a team. He missed the Avengers.

_The Avengers._

_Avengers Day._

_A-Day._

She had been there that day… She had been eager to meet her heroes. How could he forget? There was such hope in her eyes. That hope was still there, all these years later. Instead of letting go, instead of moving past, she had dug deeper.

Well, she had help.

_Tiny Dancer._

_Ha, Natasha thought she was oh so clever. But hey, now he could play Rocket Man._

She’d come to him unsure but determined. Determined to find the answers, determined to do all she could to uncover the truth. Tony knew she was the real deal. She was a go-getter.

Tony admired her. He admired her bravery, and her dedication. But most of all, he admired her spirit. He knew Steve would too. Steve would love her. He’d say something outdated. “That kid, she has gumption,” or something of the sort.

_Steve. How I wish you could be here._

**But I must warn you, a large storm system has moved into your direct flight path.**

Tony checked his gauntlet.

“Never rains, but it pours,” he said. Then, he sighed. “Well, can’t wait any longer.”

“Tony,” said Kamala, hurried.

“I loaded up some music to give you a little boost,” she said.

“Oh no,” he said, shaking his head.

“Don’t worry,” she added. “It’s not mine.”

He smiled.

_I knew I liked you._

She wished him luck. He thanked her, though he didn’t believe in luck. He had one try. Only one try to get it right. She was counting on him, they all were. It felt good to be needed. It felt good to be useful. All these years, he had wanted nothing more. He couldn’t fail now. Not again.

“Three.”

“Two.”

“One.”

There was no better feeling than flying. From the rough sketch to the finished armor, it was all a dream come true. He had called it a vanity project because it was. He could be vain, but now? Now, he was a proud. Proud of himself for building a spacesuit, a spacesuit he was testing. 

This was a helluva test flight.

Kamala was on edge. She warned him of the storm. He was flying right through it, but there was little he could do. He had to trust his instincts.

He swerved, but it was hard to maneuver when he was going so fast. Lightning struck and it knocked out his power. He cried, frantically, for JARVIS. He needed him more than ever, but there was no answer. He was on his own.

There was no precedent for this.

He could do this. He could do this. He had to do this.

He was almost there. The atmosphere was so thin here. Next thing, he was crashing into the solar panels, knocking them out of orbit.

 _Oh no._ _Oh no, no, no._

Using what little momentum he had, he turned, and reached for the handle just out of grasp. He held on, tightly. He was running out of air and breathing erratically. He needed to open this hatch, he needed to get inside, but it was stuck. Of course, it was stuck. He had made it this far; he wasn’t giving up. Kamala was counting on him.

He tugged on it until it gave way.

Gasping, he flew in. Once he was safe, he retracted the helmet. He was still gasping for air. His heart was beating wildly. Adrenaline pumping. He needed a moment.

“Perfect landing,” he said, to himself, now that he could speak.

He walked through the opening, checking his gauntlets. The repulsors were out of commission. He was hoping he wouldn’t need them later. He was hoping the worst was behind him, and the rest of this mission would be easy.

And they said he wasn’t an optimist.

“Hopefully, this place isn’t crawling with guards.”

He found a holographic screen. On the screen were readouts. He was trying to make sense of them.

“Regenerative formula?”

This would explain Tarleton’s head, but this, this only raised more questions. Whose… Whose blood were they using for this? Most likely an Inhuman. Some poor, unfortunate soul. But were they still here?

Only one way to find out.

“No sweat. Rescue that Inhuman. No more regen formula, no more adaptoids. High fives all around,” he said, flying through the ship.

“Oh no,” he said, repulsors at the ready, when he found the gyrosphere. It was encased.

“That’s not ominous at all,” he said.

The gyrosphere openly slowly, revealing itself as if it were a blooming rosebud. He could appreciate the beauty, but he was uneasy. Everything about this ship, about the regenerative formula, had him on edge.

It was then he noticed. There was a man. There was a man strapped in the gyrosphere. Tony squinted, trying to see who it was, tying to see if he recognized him.

And then, he did.

_Oh, God._

“Cap?”

He ran towards him. He couldn’t believe this. He couldn’t believe he was alive. After all these years, he was alive. Alive and captive. Monica was using Steve’s… She was using Steve’s blood. Steve’s blood was the source of the regenerative formula.

His blood ran cold.

_Oh, Steve._

He shuddered to think how Steve would react to this news. This would cut deep. This, this was one of his biggest fears. Steve had never wanted to be a weapon and had never consented.

Of course, it wasn’t his fault, and Tony would remind him again and again. There was nothing he could’ve done. There was no way to prevent this. He wouldn’t tell him, if the Avengers hadn’t been forced to disband, maybe they would’ve found him earlier. If they hadn’t been forced to go their separate ways, maybe they would’ve been able to put a stop to Monica’s plan much earlier.

No, he wasn’t going to think about all of that now. Not when Steve needed him, and they needed to get out of here. They had lost so much time.

Tony stood before him; he was checking for signs of life.

“Please, please be alive,” he said.

He couldn’t stop himself from reaching out, from caressing his cheek.

“Steve,” he said. “Steve. Holy shit, you’re alive.”

Then, Steve opened his eyes. Tony hadn’t let himself dream of it. It was too far-fetched, and besides, it wouldn’t do his aching heart any good. But here he was, on a satellite orbiting the earth, face-to-face with a man he had thought long dead.

“Tony,” said Steve, softly. “What is all this stuff? Where am I?”

Tony didn’t answer him. He was busy unhooking all the straps, and besides, there would be enough time to discuss these matters on the flight back.

Just then, Steve fell into his arms. If he hadn’t been in the armor, they would’ve tumbled to the floor. Luckily, Tony could support his weight as he was still in the suit.

“I gotcha buddy,” he said.

He wouldn’t cry. Not today, not about this.

Tony hugged him.

“Tony, are you hugging me?”

_Yes._

“What? No, I just didn’t want you to fall.”

“Then, why aren’t you letting go?”

_You always see right through me._

“I thought I’d…”

 _I thought I_ _’d lost you. I thought we were out of time. I thought I would never see you again._ He didn’t say any of that though.

“We thought… I mean, I thought that… It’s good to have you back, Cap.”

Tony continued to support the bulk of his weight as they moved through the ship. They couldn’t linger. They needed to get out. Tony knew there were guards, he just hadn’t encountered them. Yet.

“I’m so confused,” said Steve.

“Yeah, we’ve got to get you out of here,” said Tony. He’d explain it all later, but now wasn’t the time.

Steve stopped him. Bracing himself, he said, “Tarleton, did he survive?”

Tony was confused and made his confusion known. What did it matter?

“Yeah, he survived. Thanks to you. He and Monica… Well, if you believe the new stories.”

Steve dropped to his knees. “That… That doesn’t make sense,” he said.

 _Of course, he was thinking of everyone but himself._ His muscles were atrophied. He needed some time to compose himself. Tony kept an arm around him; supportive. 

“The evacuation, all those people,” said Steve.

Cutting off, Tony said, “We’ll get to that, can you walk?”

Steve put his hands on his knees. Tony waited, he needed to know Steve was okay. Then, Steve rubbed his eyes and nodded.

“There’s the Cap I remember,” he said, with a hint of pride.

Tony explained the plan, not that there was much of a plan, seeing as how Tony had barely made it. They made their way through the ship, quickly; undetected. It almost worked.

They were close to the escape pod when robots ambushed them. Steve fought them off as Tony flew ahead.

“Tony,” said Steve, unsure. “How long was I…”

He trailed off, but Tony knew the question and was ready for an answer.

“Five years, which for you is just a power nap,” he said.

“Starting to think people prefer me on ice,” said Steve.

“See? Jokes already. Corny ones, at that.”

**WARNING. HULL INTEGRITY COMPROMISED. PLEASE EVACUATE THE STATION IMMEDIATELY.**

Steve pushed the door open and then, turned back.

“Tony!”

He was fighting an army of robots.

“No time to fight. Let’s move,” he said.

They were running out of time.

The artificial gravity generators were failing, which was the last thing they needed. They were already racing against the clock, with the robots gaining on them.

“Tony, hurry!”

“Buy me some time!”

Steve fought off the last of the robots. They made it inside the escape pod only seconds before the ship exploded. They were both breathing heavy. They had managed to escape a fiery death, but they were far from clear. The explosion had taken with it their engines. They were sitting ducks.

“At least it’s a good view,” said Steve, looking to the stars before them.

“That it is,” said Tony.

They were quiet for a moment, lost in their thoughts. There was so much to say and so little time.

“Damn it,” said Tony. “So close.”

He took a deep breath. “Since we’re going to die anyway, any last confessions?”

He was looking at his feet. He was joking, but only half.

Steve faced him, wearing a curious expression. “Your jokes, I don’t get them,” he said.

“I know, I read your diary,” said Tony, laughing.

It was really Steve; he was here. He needed to know, now more than ever.

“Why’d you smash the reactor, Cap? A lot of people died.”

The mood changed; Steve looked away. He looked out, into the stars.

“There was something buried, deep beneath the Bay,” he said. “Linked to the reactor, working its way to surface, every minute.”

“The earthquake,” said Tony, the pieces of the puzzle coming together, now, at the end of things.

“The entire San Andreas fault was about to blow. I had to do something, Tony. The ocean would’ve consumed the city. Millions would’ve died.”

Tony was quiet for a moment, letting the information wash over him.

“Never doubted you, just needed to hear it for myself,” he said. Tony trusted Steve, and trusted his judgment. He needed closure, that was all.

They sat in companionable silence for some time. Tony had more questions and he knew Steve did too. He wasn’t sure he could answer them all.

Then, he recalled Steve’s penchant for sketching, and laughed softly. Steve looked at him quizzically, before turning back to the stars.

“Too bad you don’t have a sketchpad,” said Tony.

Steve smiled.

“Don’t tell me,” said Tony.

“Couldn’t do her justice,” said Steve, looking at him now, wearing an expression Tony couldn’t read.

“I can think of a different thing I wish I could sketch,” he said, after some time.

“Oh? What, exactly?”

“I’m looking right at him,” said Steve before pulling him into a kiss.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on [Tumblr](https://viudanegraaa.tumblr.com/).


End file.
